


The Key of Marvin

by Apetslife



Category: Popslash
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-02-03
Updated: 2012-02-03
Packaged: 2017-10-30 12:58:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,635
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/331978
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Apetslife/pseuds/Apetslife
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>JC is stranded off the Florida Keys.  Nick loves boats.  The rest is history.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Key of Marvin

The Key of Marvin  
by Pet  
Written for the Summer of Crossover Love challenge

It would be one thing, JC thought disconsolately, to be stranded in Africa or Southeast Asia or Peru or somewhere exotic and interesting and remote. Then he could call Chris or Justin or Joey and say "I'm stuck in Peru!" and they would be properly sympathetic and horrified and helpful. He just couldn't bring himself to call them and say he was trapped in the Florida Keys.

He lifted sweat-wet curls off the back of his neck, and thought seriously about just shaving his head. It had worked for Justin, after all, and if he recalled correctly, short hair was much cooler. Much. He knew he'd never do it, though. His hair was just too pretty, and he loved it.

He could go into his cabin and get out of the sun, but he kind of liked sitting out here on the deck, staring at the tiny dock and small outbuildings and research center, rocking gently with the motion of the little waves that were curling up on the shore. At least it was restful. And the birds were very nice.

The controls for his boat were sitting there taunting him. He was pretty sure they had been created for maximum incomprehensibility; when he'd decided to spend his summer boating, he'd been imagining a small sailboat, himself the only crew, alone with the sea and the sun and a couple of ropes and a totally obedient sail. This yachty thing with a console that looked like something out of Star Trek wasn't really what he'd had in mind. Though he assumed his bed here was much more comfortable.

A man came out of the research center, stared in his direction, and walked back inside. JC raised his hand to wave a moment too late, and sighed, and tucked his bare feet back underneath him. He was famous. Eventually, someone was bound to come looking for him. In the meantime, at least there was a breeze to keep him from roasting completely to death.

***

A shouting voice woke JC, and he blinked awake, staring around himself in bafflement. He was hot, his head hurt, and someone was shouting, what the fuck? A sharp bump and roll of the boat beneath him reminded him, and he scrambled to his feet, clinging to the back of the chair he'd settled beside. The sun was much lower in the sky, and from the tightness of burned skin on his face and arms, he'd been asleep in the sun for a long time.

Another bump, and he frowned. Something was bumping his boat, and that didn't seem right. He stepped carefully to the edge, the side where he was tied to the dock, and there was another boat there. Almost a twin of his own, big and white and expensive-looking, and someone was tying it to the other side of JC's dock. JC wasn't sure how he felt about that. On the one hand, company was nice. On the other, having neighbors was always a dicey thing, and he'd been feeling a little proprietary about this dock.

Gleaming gold caught his eye, and he watched admiringly as the big man tying up the boat finished off the knot with professional efficiency, and jumped lightfooted from his boat to the dock. When JC'd tried that he'd fallen into the ocean. But this guy was good, and shirtless, and so tan that his pale hair almost looked white, and covered in tattoos including a really cool one down his sp-

JC meeped and ducked down behind the big cooler that had once contained beer.

Nick was shaking hands with someone at the end of the dock when JC peeked again. He was smiling and shaking his head, then glanced at JC's boat as the other man continued to speak. JC groaned, quietly. Of course. The only other boat to come along the whole day, and it had to be Nick fucking Carter, and he had to know the bird scientists, and they had to tell him all about JC and his extreme patheticness. Patheticity? JC was never sure about that.

Nick nodded at something the man said, then turned and started towards JC's boat, bare feet slapping on the wet wood. JC swallowed hard, and prinked his fingers through his curls a little, trying to revive them from limp flatness. It was so hard to tell with Carter, whether he'd be friendly or nasty at any given meeting; but JC felt more able to deal with difficult people when he knew his hair looked okay.

Nick rapped his knuckles on the hull of JC's boat, looking up the tall side. "Chasez!" He sure wasn't whispering, and JC hung his head over the low railing, waving halfheartedly.

"Hi, Nick. How you doing?" Nice and noncommittal. Non-desperate. Non-stranded, he hoped.

"Better'n you, I hear. What's up, dog? You lost?" Nick was grinning from behind his sunglasses, one hand resting casually on the boat as he rode the swell of waves under his feet with enviable ease.

"No," JC frowned a little. "I know I'm in the Florida Keys somewhere. I'm not sure which one, but I'm pretty sure I'm not completely lost."

"That dude says you're lost." Nick poked a thumb back towards the beach, where the man was making his way back to the buildings. "He said you lost your skipper, too."

JC rolled his eyes, the realized his neck was hurting at this angle, and backed away a little. "Here, you want to come up? Might as well. I'm not going anyplace. And who calls people skippers any more? It's very Gilligan's Island." He watched as Nick pulled himself up the ladder and over the edge, and blinked a little. He always forgot how large Nick had gotten. And he couldn't remember the last time he'd seen Nick without a shirt on. He took a moment to appreciate the view.

"It's traditional," Nick shrugged, looking around the deck of JC's boat. "Hey, this is pretty nice. Is it yours?"

"No." JC was glad, too. "I rented it. The guy was supposed to take me on a tour of the Keys. Only last night it was raining and we docked here, and he got arrested."

"And you're stuck." Nick nodded and settled into one of the chairs, looking quite at home. "That sucks, man."

"It does." JC poked sadly at the too-tight, hot skin on his cheekbones and nose, wondering how lobstery he looked. "He got drunk and punched a scientist and they called the Coast Guard and they came and took him. Which, okay, I can totally understand, you know, it's a bit isolated out here and they have to be pretty strict."

"Yeah. Why didn't they take you, too?"

JC shrugged and looked down at his toes, wiggling them against the deck. "I was sleeping. They didn't know I was here."

"And you can't skipper this thing, and neither can the guys in there, and so you're stuck waiting for the next Coast Guard pass or your guy to get bailed outta the slammer on Sugarloaf, right?" Nick snickered. "Oh, man. International pop star, stuck on a bird refuge in the Florida Keys. This is Marvin Key, just so you know."

"Like the Martian?" JC squinted at Nick. The sun was very bright on him, he was almost all one color. Gold.

"Yeah, just like the Martian. And no, I don't know why." Nick sighed, and dug into the pocket of his long shorts. "Here." He handed JC a wad of white fabric, which, when JC unfolded it cautiously, turned out to be a large white bucket hat decorated with colored bands. He smiled, and popped it onto his head. It was huge, and he tipped his chin up and peered out at Nick down his nose, from under the brim.

"Oh Jesus." Nick was grinning at him. "Little big. At least you won't get burned, huh? More burned. You're a crispy critter, JC. Shoulda used sunscreen."

"I fell asleep," JC said a little defensively. "It was hot, and there's nothing to do. My cell phone doesn't even work here."

Nick's head tipped down, like the weight of the sun was too much for it, but he was still smiling. "Good thing I came along, then," he said, and it almost sounded sweet.

***

Three beers and heat like a scratchy wool blanket against JC's skin, and even though he couldn't feel the sunburn on his face any more, he thought it might be time for some water. He was strangely lightheaded and driftier even than usual, and his legs were slippery and itchy with sweat where they crossed. A bead of moisture crawled down the groove of his spine, and it felt like a bug walking on him.

"Water," he said, and nodded, peeking out from under his hat again. He really loved this hat. He hoped Nick let him keep it so he could wear it on TV. He bet he looked bitchin' in it.

"Water water everywhere and not a drop to drink," Nick replied from his sprawl on the deck, and giggled. It was a strangely high sound to come from such a large person, JC thought.

"No, there's plenty of drops to drink, they're just all in the refrigerator. In the cabin, which is over there, and I can't feel my knees," JC informed him.

"Prolly dehydrated." Nick sounded clinical. "Sunburn and beer is a terrible combination."

"So why'd you give me the beer?" Nick had even jumped off this boat and gone to his own to get it.

A shift and hitch of Nick's body indicated a shrug. "Why should I give a shit if you're dehydrated? And you asked for it."

"You could have said no," JC complained, hearing the whine in his own voice and hating it.

"I'm not your mom." But Nick did roll to his feet, staggering only a little, and strolled into the cabin, emerging moments later with two sweating-cold bottles of water. JC's mouth would have watered if he'd had any moisture left in his whole body.

"Give, give," he demanded, holding out a hand and enjoying the boldness the beer was giving him. He didn't really know Nick that well, after all.

"uh uh uh," Nick held it out of his reach, then leaned down and rolled the bottle along the back of JC's neck, over to his shoulder then back, holding it against the nape of his neck, before lifting it away and dropping it into JC's suddenly limp hands.

"Oh," JC sighed, still feeling the cold bite against his skin, the shiver from Nick's unsolicited touch. The bottle was cooling his palms, too, and he could feel his head settling, losing some of that swimmy vagueness. "Thank you," he said carefully, before opening the bottle and drinking it down in long, blissful swallows.

When he opened his eyes, Nick was watching him, sunglasses finally gone in the low evening light. He offered the other bottle wordlessly, and JC took it with a nod, drinking more slowly this time, feeling Nick's startlingly bright blue gaze on him, as disconcerting as sunlight. All JC could hear was the whush and slop of the waves hitting the hull of his boat, and the bedtime songs of the birds. He was suddenly content.

"So." Nick's light, almost childish voice somehow didn't interfere with the evening sounds, and JC's eyes were already on him. "Whatcha doing out here anyway?"

"We're on hiatus," JC said, wondering how anyone could not know that. "We're all doing our own things, except Chris who isn't doing anything, really, but I guess that's his thing all by itself. I'm boating. Or I was." He looked sadly at the console of the boat again, all dark and unhelpful.

"Just boating? For no reason? Alone?" Nick settled back down on the deck, close enough to be seen but not so close that he could warm the air around JC. JC was pretty sure he was grateful, even though Nick was so beautiful, and nodded as he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

"I like the water," he offered, "and everyone else is busy," and thought he saw a spark of understanding in Nick. "Anyway, what are *you* doing out here? Aren't you supposed to be someplace, recording a solo album or something?"

"I'm done," Nick said shortly, and JC wanted to ask if saying it that way meant he was done recording it, or if he was just done overall, but Nick's tone and frown forbade it, and JC took a moment to appreciate the fact that Nick showed things on his face that JC could understand. Few did, and JC usually ended up saying things he shouldn't. People thought Nick was stupid; JC had always figured that Nick was just oddly socialized and a kind of inarticulate and not stupid at all, really. He could definitely sympathize.

"Okay," he finally said. "Well. It was nice of you to give me beer. My captain guy drank all mine, and I really don't know when he'll be back."

Nick nodded and tilted his head a little, rolling his beer bottle between his palms. "No problem, man. Pop stars stick together, right?" The twist of his lips was bitter, and JC was afraid to ask. "Speaking of, I can give you a lift back to Key Largo if you want. Seems a shame to stick you here with the ornithologists, when I got a boat and a license to drive."

"Don't you hit things?" JC teased carefully, feeling a light happiness come over him at the offer. He hadn't spent time with Nick in a long time, this was so nice.

"Ha ha. Funny man. That reef was *not* on the chart, I'll have you know." Nick rolled his eyes, but his smile was real again. "No, I'm perfectly safe, once I get a little of this beer out of my system."

JC nodded seriously. "On Cops sometimes they show boat cops, and they're always pulling over people driving drunk, and usually they have like two hundred pounds of weed in their boats too, and they get hauled off to jail after a high speed chase and almost hitting some poor guy on a jetski or something. So, you know, probably not a good idea to drive the boat drunk. Is the lesson there. Especially if you have weed. Do you have weed?"

"Nah." Nick responded to JC's disappointed face with a snicker. "I gave it up for Lent."

"It's Lent already?" JC was aghast. Joey usually kept them up on these things, giving up something bizarre like blowjobs or iced tea or driving for Lent, but Joey was not here and so JC hadn't been informed. He usually tried to give something up too, just to keep Joey company.

"No, doofus, that was a joke." Nick bopped him lightly on the shoulder, taking some of the sting away. "Actually, I gave it up because the Coast Guard is rabid, and I'm not really cut out for high speed chases."

"Oh, okay." JC thought the beer was probably more than enough, anyway.

"So, you up for it? Sailing the deep blue sea with me?" Nick looked kind of intense about his answer, which gave JC pause, but he figured Nick probably couldn't get away with kidnapping him off to Japan or something and doing ravishing-type things to his body, none of which JC would really object to anyway, so he nodded.

"Thank you very much. Um. Do you have food?" The beer and water were sloshing around in his empty stomach, an interesting sensation but one JC wasn't all that fond of.

"Lots." Nick heaved himself to his feet. "Grab your shit, danceboy, let's get out of here. Before the sun goes totally and we're floating around in the dark."

JC scrambled up too, shaking feeling back into his feet one by one, stretching long and cracking his back and his neck, energized by having a goal.

"My boat's not as neat as this one," Nick warned, gathering up his cooler and his sunglasses and then putting them back down. "Hand these over to me, man," and he swung himself over the edge and dropped to the deck again. JC was deeply jealous, as he carefully navigated the swaying ladder.

They repeated the maneuver backwards a few steps away, JC handing Nick the cooler, his bags of clothes, his bag of shoes, and his empty picnic basket, which Nick raised his eyebrows at. JC waved at the silent buildings, feeling a little guilty about abandoning the boat, but he'd paid in advance, after all.

"Doesn't the captain always go down with his ship?" he asked, finally making his way on board and glancing around. It was kind of a mess, lifejackets and fishing rods and random nautical-looking things scattered around the deck. The scuba suit was folded neatly next to its tank, though.

"That ain't a ship, and you ain't the captain." Nick was already at the helm, and the engine grumbled to life. "Hop off again, Gilligan, and undo the lines."

"You're better at it," JC said, eyeing the rocking dock dubiously. Maybe it was tides or something, but it hadn't been moving that much earlier in the day.

"Me captain." Nick pointed at his own chest. "You mate." He pointed at JC. "You do what I say."

"Oh reaaaaaly. Captain Tarzan. Don't you call me Jane, Nick Carter." JC felt his grin scrunch up his face a little painfully, but saluted, or tried, and swung back over the railing. Nick was still laughing when he hit the dock again.

"Stern line first," he called. "That's the one in back, JC."

"Okay." It was looped all intricately, but JC got it off fast enough, and the bow line too, at Nick's direction.

"Now, don't let go of the boat, till you can get back on. Drift, man, it's a bitch."

JC hopped back to the ladder with alacrity, never letting go. He didn't want to give Nick an excuse to leave him here with the birds.

"Okay. We're rollin'." Nick flipped a switch, did something that looked complicated, and slowly pushed a lever forward, while steering. JC was impressed; they slid smoothly back away from the dock, then turned and headed out, the boat bumping hard on each wave as they picked up speed. JC laughed as the wind cooled his damp skin, and carefully made his way up to Nick's side. Nick grinned sideways at him, bright and uncomplicated and gorgeous, and JC almost clapped his hands in delight. *This* was what he'd had in mind. He danced in place to the rythm of the boat against the waves, shimmying and bopping and shaking his booty, watching water peel away from the bow in long curls that frothed wildly as they passed.

"You're a complete nut, you know that?" Nick's voice was loud over the engine and the wind, and he wasn't dancing, but his hand settled on JC's back and steadied him and moved with him, so he was kind of dancing too.

"Yeah!" JC shouted back, flinging one hand up to grab his precious hat when it threatened to blow away. He took it off, and felt the hot wind tug at his hair.

Nick's smile changed, and his hand moved up suddenly to JC's neck, pulling him forward into a hard, hot kiss. Just a quick fierce press of his lips, then Nick was back to steering, leaving JC dazed and touching his mouth with careful fingers.

Nick hadn't done anything like that in years. JC staggered at the next wave, and sat down in the co-pilot chair with a thump. Nick had said, 'no more.' Nick had said, 'once is fun, twice is great, three times is just gay.' JC had nodded and hadn't tried again.

Nick was still heartbreakingly beautiful.

JC chewed his thumbnail and watched Nick stare out at the water, and didn't say anything at all.

***

They slowed so imperceptibly that JC, poking around in the cabin for food, didn't even notice until he stuck his head back out and realized they were almost at a standstill. Floatstill. Whatever. He looked around for land and couldn't see any, so he stepped gingerly up the deck and saw Nick. He was sitting on the deck, way up in the bow, a beer in his hand and another by his side, staring at the sky.

The sun was about to set. Giant and red and casting light the color of blood on the water, and JC caught his breath and moved to Nick's side, sinking down cautiously beside him.

"I, ah. You had pizza. Want?" He offered a cold slice, like a neutral subject in a peace negotiation.

Nick gave him a quick smile, and traded the slice for a beer. He waved a hand carelessly at the horizon.

"I figured, when you said you wanted to go boating, this is the kind of shit you meant. Sunsets over the water, and stuff. So, I was 'bout to call you, because hey, it's setting." He bit into the pizza and chewed it with great attention. "You can keep the hat," he added.

"Thank you," JC said, nibbling at his own slice, watching the sky turn colors he didn't even have the words to describe. Some bird, large and elegant and sea-faring, turned in the wind above them, a perfect black shape against the dazzle of the sunset. JC took a deep breath for the first time in what felt like forever, and let his fingers twine with Nick's, palm to palm, when Nick reached for him.

[end]


End file.
